California Morning

Good Sunday everyone. And first of all an excuse to all our readers and of course also to the creators for not blogging that much in the last few weeks. It is funny – our blog became one year old now and yet I faced something like a blogging blocade. If you are a blogger, you maybe know that. If you are not let me try to explain: it was like logging in, putting some scenes and outfits together and was just not feeling it. And since it is my job to represent items the very best way I can I decided not to force it and try to get my blogging-mojo back.

On the plus side: I finally managed to get my ass in gear and to make pictures that are somewhat appealing to me. And of course I have some adorable newness to show you. Two events started beginning of April – The Mens Dept. and The Challenge. And I mixed items from both events for this californian inspired blogpost. The Mens Dept. provided me with a new haircut from Uw.st. The “Lenny Hair” is finally a curly hairstyle – and there are not that much on the grid for men anyways. And i must say I fell in love with this hair. Also Poetic Colors brought some adorable new eyes in the Mens Dept. I am wearing the Jaded Eyes Emerald. The Thorn Necklace comes from Kosh and the Cardigan from !gO! – both also available at the sales event for guys. The denims instead are the new mesh release from [ JP ]:dsg and I simply love them. First of all the texturing is fantastic. And second the denims have a belt that does not look like you are wearing a tire around your hips. Really well done and strongly recommended.

The titel of this post is “California Morning” and it comes from this months theme of The Challenge: California Bungalow. And L&K Prefabs have exactly that as item for The Challenge – a California Bungalow. The prefab has a very bold texturing and has two rooms and a veranda also. And it is not only a 100% mesh build but also beautifully made. I especially love the texturing inside and I hope that the pictures give you a fair impression of that.

What I am showing you here is the main room of the bungalow. The chairs and the side table in the upper part of the picture come from [kusshon] and are – again – from the Mens Dept. The new released Singapore series has a great vacation vibe, but also fits, like shown above, in nearly every kind of room. Like with all items from [kusshon] there are a lot of gadgets included in the furniture. Not alone that the chairs hold 14 animations – the pillows also give you things like magazines, a glass of wine and a cigarette matching some of the animations. I really love the backdrop and the side table with the tropical fruits.

In the lower part of above picture you can see some more items from The Challenge. There is the dining table with chairs from EoD called “Dining at Home”. And the tea set is just one of the many things the table can rez. The nightstand comes from 22769 ~ [bauwerk] and it works as nightstand for your bed, but also as console like used here. The set includes a completely decorated version, a plain version and all decoration pieces as stand alones also. The Light on the nightstand has a turn on/off script inside. The rug is a new release from L&K Prefabs which will come to the store soon in many different colors. The guitar bookcase is from floorplan and again from the Mens Dept. And the antler is a mesh accessory from Scarlet Creative.

Breno just released the Niall Morning Chaise. I really love the texturing on this one and the poses fit even taller avatars like I am. Also there are a lot of new stuff to find in the new Breno Store like the checkmate artwork also. The stars lamp are from *bbqq* and are their share for the new Mens Dept. The books and the newspapers are decoration pieces I gathered for some time now. And the bookshelf in the closing picture is from World Of Wood and I really must say that this piece is definitely one of the most realistic looking bookshelfes I have found in secondlife. So if you have a thing for books you definitely should pay World Of Wood a visit.

List of stuff:

Hair: UW.St – Prince (black) (for the Mens Dept.)

Eyes: Poetic Colors – Jaded Eyes Emerald (for the Mens Dept.)

Cardigan: !gO! – Male Cardigan (for the Mens Dept.)

Necklace: KOSH – Thorn Necklace Antique (for the Mens Dept.)

Pants: [ JP ]dsg. – Manoa JNS denim

Prefab: L&K Prefabs – Blue Bungalow (for “The Challenge“)

Chairs: [kusshon] – Singapore Chair (for the Mens Dept.)

Sidetable: [kusshon] – Singapore Sidetable with Fruits (for the Mens Dept.)

Backdrop: [kusshon] – Singapore Wall Rug (for the Mens Dept.)

Nightstand: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] –California Nightstand (for “The Challenge“)

Table and Chairs: End Of Daze – Dining at Home (for “The Challenge“)

Rug: L&K Prefabs – Ilio Rug (owl) (out soon)

Bookcase: floorplan. – guitar bookcase (for the Mens Dept.)

Antler: Scarlet Creative – Mounted Antler

Drapes: LISP Bazaar – Beatrice Heavy Drapes

Daybed: Breno – Niall Morning Chaise

Artwork: Breno – Checkmate

Lamps: *bbqq* - Stars Lamp (for the Mens Dept.)

Newspaper: World Of Wood – Newspapers

Books: flowey & art dummy – part of  “sleepless bed”

Rug: L&K Prefabs – Ilio Rug (owl) (khaki)

Bookshelf: World Of Wood – Hunters Bookshelf

Mancave

Greetings. The Mens Dept entered the March round – and as always many brilliant designs and stuff to be found here for a snip. Not only clothing and accessory, but also furniture and decor. But let us start with my todays look: the hair comes from Uw.st and is called “Prince”. Uw.st are the first time in the Mens Dept and they even went with two different hairstyles. The asymmetric shirt I am wearing comes from the guys from 22769 and it is available in 4 different styles. The pants are from Razorblade Jacket. The great thing about those pants is that they come with a HUD – so you can change the color by one mouseclick. My shoes are from [ JP ] .dsg and are the Varial Sneakers – also controlled by HUD.

Like said above the Mens Dept. also holds a lot of furniture with men in mind. So if you want to decorate your mancave you should pay the Mens Dept. a visit. The skybox I shot my pictures today is from 22769 ~ [bauwerk] and it is their share for The Challenge TUDOR (I have written about The Challenge already here.). It is the perfect place for a single man in sl cause it has two rooms and I especially love the ceiling details and the warm colors in it.

List of stuff:
Hair: UW.St – Prince (black) (for the Mens Dept.)
Shirt: 22769 ~ casual couture – Asymmetric Shirt Black/White (for the Mens Dept.)
Pants: Razorblade Jacket – Cargo Faders (for the Mens Dept.)
Sneaker: [ JP ]dsg. – Sneaker Varial Multicolor
Skybox: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – The Tudor Room (for “The Challenge“)

I decided to decorate my mancave with stuff from the Mens Dept, the Arcade and some bits and pieces i bought the last couple of days. The wonderful modern and quirky Pedal Lamp comes from [bauwerk] and also the Corduroy Armchair UK is from [bauwerk]. The chair is available in the Mens Dept. The case is from [HANDverk] and it is the Oz Relic display case from the Arcade. The dresser with the telly comes from [kusshon] and the animalia paper prints are from vespertine – both items are also available in the new round of the Mens Dept.

The couchtable and also the vase, the candles and the rug come from Designer Prims. The hockey wall art was the hunt gift for the 4 Walls Hunt from Cheeky Pea. The floorlamp is from BRENO who recently moved their store – so update your landmarks! The TinTin rocket statue comes from [bauwerk] and the swan chair again is from [HANDverk] and is their share for the current Mens Dept. The magazine holder is also to be found in the Mens Dept. and it comes from MudHoney.

On my working desk – which is the rare item from DIGS for the Arcade you can see the beer and chips tray from [kusshon] and the wonderful Oz Relic “the Wizard’s balloon” from [HANDverk] also for the Arcade. The ground statue is from DownDownDown and can be found in the current Gallery Gift Shop – and also the wall art “nude” by Piedra Lubitsch. The Alien Head comes from [bauwerk] and I so love the name of it: “went deer hunting and came back with that”.

List of stuff:
Hanging Lamp: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – Tiberius Pedal Lamp
Armchair: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – Corduroy Armchair UK (for the Mens Dept.)
Case: [HANDverk] – Oz Relic display case (for the Arcade Gatcha Event)
Dresser: [kusshon] – It’s a mans world dresser (for the Mens Dept.)
Paper Prints: {vespertine} – Animalia Paper Prints  (for the Mens Dept.)
Couchtable: Designer Prims – Concrete Tile Coffee Table
Hockey Wall Art: :CP: – Jones Wall Art
Floor Lamp: BRENO – Lumos Lamp (NEW LANDMARK!)
Chair: [HANDverk] – Swan Chair White (for the Mens Dept.)
Rocket Statue: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – Fly me to the moon Statue
Working Desk and Chair:  DIGS – Engman Desk & Chair – Black/Ash (for the Arcade Gatcha Event)
Balloon Decoration: [HANDverk] – Oz Relic ”the Wizard’s balloon” (for the Arcade Gatcha Event)
Floor Statue: DownDownDown – Bronce Statue (for the Gallery Gift Shop)
Wall Art: Piedra Lubitsch – Nude (for the Gallery Gift Shop)
Trophy: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – Went deer hunting and came back with that

In my bedroom I decided to use the wonderful quirky bed from L&K Prefabs. The bed “morning wood” (yes, you have read right) is the item from L&K Prefabs for above mentioned The Challenge and it is awesome. I really love the idea with the tree and the nightlight. The clothes rack comes from *bbqq* who also joined the Mens Dept for the first time with this item. The wall art again comes from the Gallery Gift Shop and is by Chiana Oh “To Another World”. And the chair again comes from [HANDverk]. The privacy screen with the vitage girls is available in the Mens Dept also and it is from [kusshon].

List of stuff:

Bed: L&K Prefabs – Morning Wood (for “The Challenge“)
Wall Art: Chiana Oh – To Another World (for the Gallery Gift Shop)
Clothes Rack: *bbqq* - Clothes Rack (for the Mens Dept.)
Throne: [HANDverk] – Oz Relic ”the throne of Oz” (for the Arcade Gatcha Event)
Screen: [kusshon] – Its a mans world private screen (for the Mens Dept.)

And finally – the posters above the fireplace are from the currently running Monochrome Hunt and they are from Iconic.

List of stuff:
Posters: Iconic – monochrome
Big Rug: POST – Deco Rug, Robert Delaunay, 1930s

The Challenger

Happy weekend. There is a new fun event within secondlife called “The Challenge”. So what is this all about? It is a group of Home and Garden builder who decided that it would be nice to become challenged by random themes each month to craft at least one item according to the theme. And of course the themes are not necessarily that obvious. So for the first round the creators got “Tudor Style” and they did a brilliant job with their items.

First of all: Tudor is not a really common building style within SL – so it is nice that people decided to bring it inworld. And second – even if the creators worked around the theme you still can tell that it is an item from their store. Like i.e. this Tudor Bench from EoD. It is available in three different options/colors and it is massivly filled with single and couple animations. It is a wonderful piece of furniture that – as you can see – not only matches history themed rooms and homes.

Another wonderful item to be found within “The Challenge” is the Rhys Pergola from BRENO. And again – this is indeed Tudor style but also fits nearly every kind of sim you can imagine. Also it comes with and without curtains. So if you need something for your virtual garden or park – you definitely should check back with BRENO. Michigans Shack even crafted a complete Tudor house you can see in the background. And yes – it is big, but wonderful. The Tudor Mansion has 6 rooms on the first floor and 5 rooms on the second floor and makes a fantastic home for SL familys.

The thing that thrills me about “The Challenge” is the variety of items and also – like said above – that they are according to the theme but that they are also brilliant stand alone items that have not just become built for the one purpose, but are an addition to the offers of the stores. And last but not least: most of “The Challenge” items are having a discount in the first week of release – and if i calculated right this will be until 6. March 2013. So better hurry up!

List of stuff:

Hair: [iruco] hair23M (black)

Skin: Belleza – Jacob Skin Mens Dept edition (for the Mens Dept.)

Jumper: [SLEEPY EDDY] – Turtleneck Fishermans Sweater Brown

Pants: Razorblade Jacket – Hoon Faded Cords

Sneaker: [ JP ]dsg. – Sneaker Varial Multicolor (comes with HUD)

Bench: End Of Daze – Tudor Chaise (for “The Challenge“)

Pergola: BRENO – Rhys Pergola (for “The Challenge“)

House: [Michigans Shack] – Tudor Mansion House Prefab (for “The Challenge“)

Skybox: Garden of Dreams – The Field

On the Beach

The February Mens Dept. has some great skins to find for a bargain. I already showed you the new FRUK Skin yesterday – today it is the special edition of the Jacob Skin from Belleza. Wonderfully made and rich on details and I especially love the tone of the skin – not to dark and not to fair. Definitely worth to check out. Also from the Mens Dept. are the Arabasque Briefs from Lazybum. They come in six different styles, with prim bulge and drawstrings.

Poses are essential for pictures within secondlife. Poseology offer the Donovan Pose Set also at the Mens Dept. and these are very casual and great to use for any occasion (as shown below).

BRENO just have released the Corfu Hammock you can see behind me in above pictures. The hammock has three different fabric textures (guy thing – shown here, pure and Santorini) and also three different wood textures (bleached, cherry -shown here and dark). Also it has seven single and nine couple poses included. It is a lovely item for each beach themed sim or also for your secondlife garden since it is so versatile to fit nearly every style.

The sneaker I am wearing are the new release from [ JP ] dsg. The Varial Sneaker can become controlled by a HUD with size and color and are extremely detailed and just so real looking. And there is a thing I really want to add: I really love the way [ JP ] dsg. are setting up their HUDs – first it is really understandable by first sight and you do not have to click through a bunch of submenues to get what you want and second the design of the HUD is everytime a piece of art by its own.

List of stuff:

Hair: [iruco] hair23M (black)

Skin: Belleza – Jacob Skin Mens Dept edition (for the Mens Dept.)

Briefs: [Lazybum] – Arabasque Briefs B&B (for the Mens Dept.)

Sneaker: [ JP ]dsg. – Sneaker Varial Multicolor (comes with HUD)

Poses: Poseology – Donovan Pose Set (for the Mens Dept.)

Hammock: BRENO – Corfu Hammock

Dreamscene: Garden of Dreams – Hidden Cove

Rock of Ages

The new round of L’Accessoires has some surprises: first of all a new location – so better update your landmarks. L’Accessoires in February has also a lot of items that are for boys or at least pretty unisex. So you have no excuse anymore to spare this event. A few are shown here:

Starting with the fabulous necklace: the Sascha Uomo Necklace from Zibska is wonderful crafted and splendid on details. And same goes with the Divinity Headpiece from Glam Affair that comes in 8 different styles. Might be a little bit extravagant and glam rock-ish, but hey, this is SL. And it is the perfect piece for a unique look. Also the sunglasses are from L’Accessoire: They come from MONS and are available at the venue in 4 different colors.

The skin is the new “Bennet” Skin from FRUK. The style “Rock of Ages” is an offer right now at the current Mens Dept. and it comes with hairbase- and bodyhair-tattoo.

List of stuff:

Skin: FRUK – Bennet “Rock of Ages” (for the Mens Dept.)

Hair: Dura – Dura-Boy*12 (black)

Headpiece: Glam Affair – Divinity (for L’Accessoires)

Shades: MONS – Rounded Sunglasses black (for L’Accessoires)

Necklace: Zibska – Sascha Uomo (for L’Accessoires)